On day one of Fierce Networks’ “Exploring Revenue Streams with 5G Networking” event, I had the pleasure of moderating a panel titled “The Evolution of 5G Advanced: Beyond Connectivity.” Together with Mike Irizarry, EVP & CTO at UScellular, and Leonard Lee, Executive Analyst at neXt Curve, we explored the current state of 5G, the promise of 5G Advanced, and what lies ahead as we move toward 6G.
Here are a few reflections from that rich and insightful conversation.
We’re only just getting started with 5G
Despite the marketing hype, we’re still in the early innings of the 5G journey. As Leonard put it bluntly: “5G hasn’t even started yet.”
5G deployment has been underway for years, yet operators remain divided on the non-standalone access (NSA) vs. standalone access (SA) debate. Initial deployments largely relied on NSA, essentially, a 5G radio bolted onto a 4G core. While this allowed for quicker rollouts, it held back the technology's full promise. Today, only about 25% of global operators have invested in public 5G standalone (SA) deployments, according to GSA. That leaves the majority of advanced (and promised) 5G capabilities, such as network slicing, ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLCC), and massive IoT, either unrealized or underutilized.
FWA: A practical use case, but not without trade-offs
One area where 5G is seeing real traction is Fixed Wireless Access (FWA). Mike shared that UScellular has experienced strong take-up of FWA—especially in regions where deploying fiber simply isn’t cost-effective.
However, the economics are tight. FWA consumes 15–20 times more network capacity than a mobile smartphone user—yet in the USA it generates roughly the same revenue as a single line mobile plan ($30-40). Without surplus spectrum and careful network capacity management, FWA risks undermining mobile quality rather than complementing it.
FWA is clearly a use case born out of necessity, but its long-term viability depends on intelligent network planning and continued investment in mid-band capacity.
5G Advanced: the industry’s next hope/hype?
As we shift into 5G Advanced (Release 18), we’re told that this is where the long-promised benefits of 5G will finally start to materialize. But a critical question remains: are we actually ready?
Features like RedCap (for reduced-capability, low-cost IoT devices), enhanced positioning, and native AI integration are exciting on paper. But to unlock their value, operators need robust standalone (SA) core deployments and a supporting ecosystem of compatible devices—neither of which are yet widespread.
Mike Irizarry stressed a crucial point: if traffic continues to grow at its current pace it’s simply not cost-effective to rely on today’s 5G networks alone. Without meaningful upgrades, the economics of supporting this growth will break down.
“5G is not going to be able to handle that cost effectively,” Mike said. “We need the enhancements that 5G Advanced and 6G are going to bring—higher spectrum bands, native AI rather than bolt-on AI, and a disaggregated architecture enabled by Open RAN. That’s what will give us a much more flexible, scalable, and cost-efficient network.”
He’s right—and the implication is clear: spectrum alone won’t save us. Densification won’t either. Nor will another wave of incremental hardware upgrades.
Mike also urged the industry to make 6G software-upgradable—a future-proofing step that would avoid another expensive, large-scale hardware overhaul. You’d think that lesson would be firmly learned by now. But unless the entire ecosystem – operators, vendors, and standards bodies – align early on long-term strategy, we risk repeating the same cycle of hype and underdelivery that has dogged much of 5G’s rollout to date.
AI: Beyond the hype
At MWC, AI was the only story in town, but on our panel, we drilled down into what AI can actually do for telcos today.
Mike cited examples like dynamic shutdown of unused carriers and real-time spectrum optimization—AI that delivers direct, measurable impact. Leonard added a healthy dose of realism: most of what’s working in telecoms today is traditional machine learning, not GenAI or futuristic autonomous networks.
Still, AI-native design—especially in 5G Advanced and 6G—is essential if we want to move beyond bolt-on solutions and into truly adaptive, efficient networks.
Security & trust will be core differentiators
As networks grow more complex and open, security can no longer be an afterthought. With more connected devices, more edge computing, and greater use of AI, the attack surface expands.
Mike shared how UScellular is embedding security by design into its 5G and future 6G deployments, adopting cloud-native, disaggregated architectures that allow for more agile and secure operations. Trust, as Leonard rightly pointed out, is likely to become a key KPI—especially as operators look to differentiate through value-added services beyond basic connectivity. Whether or not they will be able to monetize it is another question.
So, what’s the path to monetization?
We returned, again and again, prompted by the audience, to the question of business models. While the industry waits for a “killer app,” the truth is that the path to monetization is likely to be incremental and diversified, as a more incremental, multi-pronged path to revenue is slowly emerging, including:
- Enterprise services (especially private networks)
- FWA + managed service add-ons
- AI-driven cost savings
- Security & trust-based offerings
Final thoughts
I closed the session by asking Mike and Leonard what excited them, and what worried them.
Mike is hopeful about AI’s role in building smarter, greener networks, but raised a red flag around spectrum availability, especially in dense urban markets where densification has physical limits.
Leonard pushed for a shift in industry mindset: we need to rethink mobile computing, stop chasing hype cycles, and a sustained focus on the next step each operator needs to make to progress their 5G journey.
As I see it, halfway through the 5G cycle, the gap between promise and reality remains wide. But now, at last, we are beginning to have in place some of the building blocks: standalone core, mid-band spectrum, AI integration, and cloud-native architecture.
Maybe, just maybe, it’s time for the industry to stop waiting for that one killer app and start building networks and business models that are agile, efficient, and genuinely customer-driven.
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